Villainous Secrets: The Villainous ARG
'Villainous Secrets: The ARG' Hello! This page is a work in progress. Much of the secret information that has been revealed about Villainous was obtained through the Villainous ARG. According to Wikipedia, an ARG, or Alternate Reality Game, is "...an interactive networked narrative that uses the real world as a platform and employs transmedia storytelling to deliver a story that may be altered by players' ideas or actions." In the ongoing Villainous ARG, fans find and solve clues hidden in the Orientation Videos for Villains and other related media. This is the "reality" part of the Villainous ARG. As will be discussed later, the actions of players can directly influence the story, possibly even resulting in a game over. Therefore, a word of caution: If you choose to play the Villainous ARG, don't visit the related websites too often. As will be explained in this page, giving these websites too much attention (traffic) could result in a game over, or at least in-story consequences for the characters involved. If you do visit the websites (and you should, they're awesome), please do so sparingly. One time for each site is preferable. The Villainous ARG has no official title, and no assigned chapters or parts. Therefore, to make it easier and add some flair, the storyline will be broken into 4 parts, each with an unofficial title. With that being said, here is the storyline of the Villainous ARG so far: Key Players In ARGs, the players of the game are real people. In the case of the Villainous ARG, clues and secrets are given both in Spanish and English. These are some, but not all, of the key players from the English Language community specifically. *nightfurmoon *crixge *glacia-posts *archemedes-yes *TeetleVoid *electrickedric *dr.chalk *gabygirl1243 *The Cartoon Universe Part I: The Game Begins Short Summary In 2017, the first video in the Orientation Videos for Villains series is released. User crixge points out code hidden in the end credits. User nightfurmoon responds with a translation of the code, kicking off the hunt for clues. Clues End Credits and Intro On December 3rd, 2017, user crixge finds a mysterious binary message at the end of the first of the Orientation Videos for Villains. User nightfurmoon gives us a translation: “Ya divisaste en las pantallas. Ahora busca en la red de la araña.” which, in English, reads: “You already looked at the screens. Now search in the spider web.” nightfurmoon also draws attention to another code found at the beginning of the episode. This intro code reads, "Look at the screens." This completes a set of instructions to the viewers: Look at the screens, then search the spider web. Finding Flags Soon after the discovery of this hidden message, nightfurmoon reports, "Some people from a lovely spanish group have discovered what it means: We have to look for FLAGS in the video, frame by frame! Yeah those ones that are used in the sea." These flags, which are from the ICS, can be used to represent either numbers or letters. Combing through the frames of The Lost Cases of Rhyboflavin, four flags are found, translating to O, 0, R, and Z. Alan's Clue To gain further insight into the meaning of the binary clue, nightfurmoon reaches out to Villainous' creator Alan Ituriel. Much to their surprise, Ituriel not only responds to the question but does so in the form of a riddle. His reply reads: Depende de ti el obtener la respuesta. Tanto buscar te traerá consecuencias, pero obviamente hay caminos muertos. Si los persiguen terminarán envueltos, ten cuidado pues si quieres saber, el mensaje anterior te dirá que ver. When translated to English by nightfurmoon, it reads: It depends on you to obtain the answer. All the searching will have consequences, but there’s obviously dead ends. If you chase them you’ll end up wrapped, be careful if you want to know, the previous message will tell you what to see. nightfurmoon notes that the first letters in the original spell out DOTCOM: Depende de ti el obtener la respuesta. Tanto buscar te traerá consecuencias, pero obviamente hay caminos muertos. Not long after, the puzzle solving players find all the hidden letters through translating Japanese characters to numbers, numbers to letters, and flags to letters or numbers, the latter of which were then translated to letters. Their final batch of letters are: P, O, D, EM, O, S, BA, R, LA. The First Major Discovery: Podemos Bailar glacia-posts is the first to put all the pieces together: # The letters are meant to form the phrase Podemos Bailar, or, in English, "We Can Dance." # To search the spider web, one must look for a website. Because of this, the first major discover of the game is made: a website called podemosbailar.com. This website is a meeting place for agents of a secret organization called Men Without Hats, who seek to destroy the Black Hat Organization. The "We Can Dance" motto and the name "Men Without Hats" are both coy references to The Safety Dance, a song by the band Men Without Hats. The Men Without Hats invite those who find their website to join their cause, but warn against attracting too much attention: If Black Hat finds out about their movement, they will all be in grave danger. 'Visiting the Podemos Bailar website, players find a report title screen and a set of 5 entries corresponding to OVFV episodes: # Limon (Lemon) # Impostor (Imposter) # Clasificado (Classified) # Clasificado (Classified) # Clasificado (Classified) The following is nightfurmoon's translation of the README section of Podemos Bailar: README: ''EMERGENCY CHANNEL 72.65.84 MESSAGE D0-01_V0V--- BY AGENT [REDACTED -MEMBERS OPERATION REDACTED] ........... If you’re reading this, it's because you’ve managed to find one of the guide codes that I hid in Black Hat Organization's videos. I suspect that ERROR ERROR of communication from our Agency, REDACTED. I have decided to open this communication port with the other agents of the project REDACTED in this website. The site can be compromised very easily. If any REDACTED from the Black Hat Organization finds this link, they could track me down or any agent involved in this operation. Therefore, this site will only be active briefly and for a determined period of time. Afterwards, I will be REDACTED to eradicate it along with all the collected information, to protect my identity and that of those who contributed to the investigation.... ERROR Some agents that managed to infiltrate the database and sites of REDACTED Black Hat Organization will upload the collected information sporadically, for a brief period of time. It will then be erased to avoid Black Hat's radar REDACTED........... Don't share the link with anyone. If this goes viral and reaches the Hat's eyes, we will find ourselves in a predic-REDACTED. For now, we will continue the operation. If everything goes well, in a few months I’ll manage to open up the bridge and the REDACTED objective REDACTED the operation. And this is nightfurmoon's translation of the available entries: E01 - Lemon I got them - (Saved 11.04) "I made it, I managed to get the codes to access Black Hat Organization's main computer. I'm getting in touch with Wellis, I hope that she'll be able to access Black Hat's address as fast as possible and infiltrate a direct link. Everything depends on whether Black Hat's security is as good as they say. Meanwhile we have to hurry. But if breaking into the security of the address is as simple as it was stealing the codes, then I bet we're about to complete the mission." -Cooper ' Priority - (Outpost) "Very well Cooper, Wellis received the information, I trust her to be able to advance further. The only way to obtain the direct link is from inside the installations, and although the doctor was able to get inside, we need a way to get her out of there, it is a priority." -C.L. E02 - Imposter Updated 03-12-02 "To any remaining agent: I hope one of you is still active and has access to this page. After such a long time, I managed to recover the code to access Black Hat Organization's main computer and hid it in the orientation videos. I couldn't risk hiding it in one go and compromising my location, so I hid it in different videos, in different ways. I hope to quickly create a direct and stable link to the BH org’s interface and expose it publicly, and if I succeed, it'll give us the advantage that we were looking for and much more. For now I managed to keep this site out of the Hat's radar, but I'm sure I won't be able to do it for much longer. If any agent still has access to this site, please.... I could use a little help." ENDED -not identified' '''The First Update The agent in E02 posts again, this time with classified documents stolen from Black Hat Organization. The documents are Dr. Flug's blueprints for different hatbot designs. The agent states they are analyzing the blueprints for possible weaknesses in the current line of hatbots. For a moment, it seems the Men Without Hats are unscathed, but as this brave agent recognized in their previous entry, the balance could easily be tipped the other way. And indeed, their victory is soon overshadowed by even greater losses for Men With Hats. Black Hat Sees All Both the recent OVFV episode and Podemos Bailar website suddenly disappear. Players shocked, as there is no apparent explanation for the disappearances. Then, a chilling broadcast uploaded to Alan Ituriel's twitter reveals the purpose of the removals (translation by nightfurmoon): This is a message from Black Hat to the world. I know what you all are thinking. Where is my video? What happened, it was here a minute ago! MUAHAHAHA! It's worth seeing the expressions in your faces, but Black Hat Organization will return more powerful and stronger than ever! And then, when the internet is infected with my glorious evilness, ask yourselves if '''you can dance'.'' N''''ot only is Black Hat aware of Men Without Hats, he knows about the players of the ARG. He can see our interference and meddling, and he wants to mock us for thinking we could escape his gaze. His message is a sadistic reminder: he sees all. It's unknown if the players of the ARG lead Black Hat to Men Without Hats, or if he was watching from the start. However, one thing is sure: Black Hat is very excited to crush the revolution before it even gets off the ground. And he is eager to start his hunt for a certain group of operatives. This event marks the end of Act I. Part II: Danse Macabre Short Summary As players continue to hunt for clues in the OVFV series, Black Hat hunts down the agents of Podemos Bailar. Clues #OK KO #The Power Puff Girls #The Amazing World of Gumball #Diego's Safety Dance #Everyone Will Soon Wear the Hat #Krypton and Kasnia #Audio Secret #Justin Case #King Wazuq #Demencia's Report #Demencia Stole What?! Two Can Still Dance Part III: Spider's Web Short Summary In their riskiest move yet, players gain access to a more sinister website... Clues #Ben 10 #Con Mask Codes #Samurai Jack #Painting Clue #He Won't Let You See #Steven Universe #Regular Show #Code Name: Kids Next Door #TMTV Takeover Story #Metauro #Flug, Demencia, and 5.0.5.'s Files #Cult of Black Hat #Shi-Bo Inc. #Gem #Aldo Maldonado #Last Dance #Penumbra #Flug, Demencia, and 5.0.5. Additional Info Discoveries #blackhatorganization.com #The Password Hacking BHO Part IV: First Flight Short Summary The current phase of the game, starting after the discovery of blackhatorganization.com the release of the Villainous pilot. Clues So Far #Goldheart Story So Far #Penumbra Additional Info #Magician's Warning